<p>I've visited some liberal arts colleges and several universities. I've felt at home and comfortable in a couple of each type. So my question is, how do you know if you prefer being at a LAC or at a university? How did you know?</p>
<p>I wanted small classes, not being in an auditorium, I wanted all profs, not TAs, I wanted a community and not a factory.</p>
<p>I know at least one student who didn’t fully realize until attending the accepted student days at a university and then an LAC. As you’re about to decide sometimes the feeling that you might not be as significant in a university setting becomes a factor. On the other hand, the feeling that a liberal arts college doesn’t have as many course options might become a bigger concern at that point. Or you might want to leave the door open to computer science or engineering not offered at a LAC. Try to stay overnight at each type if possible.</p>
<p>Don’t overlook the possibility that you might be someone who could be successful and happy in either kind of setting.</p>
<p>Despite snarlatron’s obviously slanted post above, both types of institutions have their assets and their liabilities. It’s kind of like a restaurant menu. You might prefer the lobster and I might prefer the steak. That doesn’t mean one of us is right and one of us is wrong. </p>
<p>If you’ve visited and liked both small colleges and larger universities, then in the end you should probably choose based on some other criterion (price, location, distance from home, or whatever), because, unlike the restaurant analogy, you can’t just order the surf and turf.</p>
<p>If you prefer the LAC format for lower division courses, but do not like the usual limitations on offerings of upper division and graduate level courses, you may prefer LACs with cross-registration agreements with nearby research universities (that are convenient to get to, like Barnard / Columbia or Amherst / UMass - Amherst).</p>